Wednesday, December 05, 2007

Habeas Corpus

Habeas Corpus, produce the body, or evidence, is the essence of due process. That the detainees in Guantanamo have not had fair hearings at the military tribunals is evidenced by MurnatKurnaz, a German who has been held there even after German Intelligence had declared that he was not a terrorist and American authorities agreed and were to release him in a few weeks, back in 2002.He was not released until 2006, since he had been found and held as an enemy combatant after a subsequent military tribunal. See http://www.commondreams.org/archive/2007/12/05/5632/.

This is why the Supreme Court is hearing arguments regarding if the detainees have the right to a habeas corpus challenge to their imprisonment: Does the government have a valid basis for such imprisonment.

After the Supreme Court had previously ruled that the detainees had rights, since the naval base was functionally considered American territory, Congress quickly passed the Military Commissions Act. (Here is the White House Fact Sheet on the Act citation: http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2006/10/20061017.html). This act strips courts of the jurisdiction to hear detainees' habeas corpus cases.

This is what is before the Supreme Court today...the fundamental essence of due process.

Dr.JAM is a professor of Political Science and Women's Studies at Marist College, Poughkeepsie NY. Her main focus is teaching students to be critical thinkers and active citizens. She worked in both the Koch and Cuomo administrations before returning to academia. She teaches Modern Political Thought, Contemporary Ideologies, Feminist Political Thought, American National Government, Political Ideas and Issues, Political and Social Movements, among other courses.
She writes a regular column (Walk the Talk) in InsideOut (tm). She has written many articles and books including The Historical Dictionary of the Lesbian Liberation Movement: Still the Rage (Rowman Littlefield, 2003). An active citizen, she served on the boards of Hudson River Sloop Clearwater (where she once was cook); The Grace Smith House,currently she serves on the (executive) boards of the Eleanor Roosevelt Center at ValKill and the Ulster County Democratic Women. $>